Mammals are facing extinction

If there was ever a wake-up call that the world needs to do something, urgently, to protect our endangered mammals, this piece from the TimesOnLine, reporting on the "Red List" of endangered species, makes for sober and compelling reading.

"A fifth of the world's known mammals, a third of amphibians and reptiles and more than two thirds of plants are threatened with extinction, according to the latest "Red List" of endangered species.

Some gorilla species are close to extinction, warns the International Union for Conservation of Nature. (Photograph: Guardian)Of the 5,490 mammal species that have been identified by scientists, 79 are extinct or extinct in the wild, 188 are critically endangered, 449 are endangered and 505 are classed as vulnerable, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) said.

The annual Red List, published today, also shows that 70 per cent of identified planets, 35 per cent of invertebrates, 37 per cent of freshwater fish, 30 per cent of amphibians, 28 per cent of reptiles and 12 per cent of birds are under threat. The survival of a total of 17,921 species is in jeopardy."

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